Government officials reward journalists with pizza and vodka

Something for the weekend: Many employees will be familiar with waiting for an outcome from a meeting before being able to move ahead on a project or task, but what can help motivate staff during this wait?

When patient journalists were waiting for hours for news from government officials recently, they were given pizza and vodka to help them stay motivated.

Discussions about Syria between Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and US secretary of state John Kerry took place in Geneva, Switzerland, last week, with numerous journalists waiting in the basement ballroom of the President Wilson Hotel where the talks were ongoing.

Reporters were still waiting for the scoop towards midnight when Lavrov rewarded the waiting press for their patience with a stack of pizzas, which he said were a gift from the US delegation to make up for the delay.

After journalists polished off the pizza, Lavrov made a re-appearance, this time with two bottles of Russian vodka to help wash down any remaining food. He quipped that the pizza was from the American delegation and the vodka was from the Russian delegation.

Here at Employee Benefits, we think pizza and a cheeky tipple is the ideal way to celebrate landing a great story, although hopefully we never have to wait until midnight in a basement!